I am working on my running this off season and prep for a 1/2 marathon in late January then 1/2 iron in May and IM late in the season. Last years PR at the half mary was 1:41 in Jan 06 half mary in 1/2 ironman is about 2 hours. I am doing weights 2 x a week, and fill in bike and swim when I can, just focusing on running for the coming weeks.
Actual:
Week 1: 2 runs X 3 miles and long run 6 miles: Total 12 Miles (3 runs)
Week 2: 2 runs x 3 miles and long run 8 miles: Total 14 Miles (3 Runs)
Week 3: I am on week #3 now, and planning 3 runs durning the week and one long run of 10 miles for total: 18 miles total (4 runs )
I am working towards my weekly avg of 25 - 30 miles of last year this time, how should I ramp up the miles. I was thinking of 4 to 5 runs per week of 3 to 6 miles, including the one long one.
3 runs/week? All you have to do to improve (a lot) is run 5 or more times per week. Does not have to be a lot (2 more 3 milers will do it). You will be amazed at the results. Oh, and forget the weights if you are time constrained (as we all are).
I agree with rroof. Just go out there and run as often as you can (6 days a week would be great). Frequency and consistency are key to building mileage.
Now to be that consistent, you’ll have to make sure no single run is going to put you our of commission for days on end. So you have to run well within yourself. You’ll have to use distance and intensity judiciously so that they do not burn you.
Remember, building mileage is hard in the sense that you’re asking your body to absorb more and MORE miles. But it’s not hard in the sense that no single workout is unduly strenuous.
BottomFeeder, thanks for the info, so according to post about the run challenge, bike x 2, swim x 2 and run like crazy…5 to 6 times, if one run is a LSD, then what do I do the rest of the week, 3 to 6 mile individual runs spaced out thru out the week? considering all runs now are pretty much easy pace…building base…
Thanks for the detail. 3 runs a week is NOT going to yeild significant improvments in your run for you. As rroof and Bottomfeeder have suggested, you need to up the frequency - more runs perweek. At first don’t worry about what you are doing on these runs - just run, but run within yourself. You need to be able to repeat it day after day after day . . . you get the picture. Slowly increase weekly volume. Key thing is to be consistant and make sure to nail on average 4 - 5 runs/week for a couple of months. It’s almost gaurateed that you will be running better and faster after a few months of this. It’s not that complicated!
I feel like such an impostor, as I am DEFINITELY not an authority on anything…
… But I will say that the way to build it up is start nailing that frequency first. Anything that gets in the way of establishing that frequency needs to be questioned. For example if your long run is too long that you need 2 days to recover from, you need to knock it down some. If doing 5 mi runs during the week leaves you beat, you have no business doing 5 mi runs. Only you can find out what’s preventing you from running 6 times and 30 miles a week.
I totally agree with the others. Try and run 5-6 days a week. One run should be a longer run but the key is consistency and staying health. If you push through an injury to get through the run, but have to take the next 3-4 days off to recover then it was a waste. Don’t be too set on distance but do try and increase the mileage every week with every 4th week or so decrease the mileage then build it back up. You should feel good after all of your runs and feel you have plenty left in the tank. I try and start out slower and build into the my runs to a pace that I feel comfortable. A note about staying health, make sure your shoes aren’t too worn out (500 miles or less) and try and run on a softer surface if possible(grass, trails etc).